Inside the Pride - Lions Finish Strong

Submitted by smotheringD on January 12th, 2023 at 10:51 AM

Didn't watch a full episode of Inside the Pride all year because, you know, the Lions.  And then a bad 1-6 start became 8-2 down the stretch and the Lions grew into a team really fun to watch and root for.

So here's 20 min of content I highly recommend sometime over the next 6 mo. before Fall camp starts :

  • Excellent quality video recap from Lambeau
  • Nice interviews with Hutch & GM Holmes
  • Dannie Rogers is really easy on the eyes - and is still single apparently...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2pfFaRoo-k

 

Chaco

January 12th, 2023 at 11:28 AM ^

Not a Lions fan at all but hope the day comes when you all can have a shot at a title and a consistently good team.

Imagine a Super Bowl between the Cleveland Browns and the Detroit Lions...........

Tom in AnnArbor

January 12th, 2023 at 11:41 AM ^

For this upcoming draft, from my less than cursory fandom, the Lion offense is fine.  Please, please (consider this begging) use nearly every draft pick this year on Defense.

The only exception: if you can draft Stetson Bennett in a late draft position (5, 6 or 7), I'm all for it.  The old man is a gamer.

Double-D

January 12th, 2023 at 1:05 PM ^

I think he is an interesting pick. Maybe some Brady like qualities. Some projections in fact are round 6.

Playing for such a good team on such a public stage two years in a row will keep him from dropping to much but yes he could really be a great value pick if he is available in the mid rounds. 

I'mTheStig

January 12th, 2023 at 11:42 AM ^

Crazy things about the '22 Lions (that we're not used to seeing in Detroit):

  • 5th ranked scoring offense in the league -- Lions are ahead of 10 other playoff teams in this regard.
  • Led the league in games scoring 30 points or more.
  • Goff was #6 in passing yards, #7 in average, tied for 5th in TDs, #2 in fewest sacks among starters.
  • The Lions' first round bust was #20 among ALL players in sacks -- #14 among those on the DL, and #1 among DL players in interceptions.
  • Jamaal Williams was #2 in the league in TDs.
  • The Lions record could very easily be 14 - 3; lost winnable games against: 
    • Eagles -3
    • Vikings -4
    • Seahawks -3
    • Dolphins -4
    • Bills -3

Perkis-Size Me

January 12th, 2023 at 11:52 AM ^

And how many losable games did they win? How many one score games ended up going their way? Only beat the Jets by 3, the Bears by 1, and Packers by 6 and 4 points, respectively. 

For the record, not at all trying to poo poo on your last point. The Lions are a good team, and lost by a combined six points to the two teams that a ton of people are expecting to meet in the Super Bowl (Eagles-Bills). They're trending in the right direction, to say the least. 

I just never like that argument of "We could've easily had X or Y record." Because it could've just as easily gone the other way. The Lions could've also easily lost those extra four games, got swept by the Packers, end up setting up at 5-12 for the year, and then everyone starts crowing "Same ol' Lions," thinking nothing has changed. 

Unless all of your losses were close and your wins were convincing and never much in doubt, I don't find a lot of merit in that argument of "We could've easily had this record this year," because you could've also easily had a worse record than you do as well. 

I'mTheStig

January 12th, 2023 at 11:56 AM ^

It's not so much "whataboutism"; it's noting that the product on the field was generally decent and those games were about preventable mistakes and/or missed opportunities.

Which is not something we're accustomed to seeing in Detroit.

Rather this Detroit team has the ability to hang with the best... my intent wasn't to fucking nitpick a +1 win or a -3 loss.

Perkis-Size Me

January 12th, 2023 at 1:11 PM ^

Again, I'm not at all disagreeing with you that the Lions were/are a good team. The product was very good in the latter half of the year and every Lions fan has justifiable reason to be excited for next year. Real, tangible progress has been made. They lost by a combined six points to the two teams that I expect to be in the Super Bowl. 

All I'm saying is that if you want to say "Hey, we only lost these five games by four points or less," then I think its also a valid point to come back and say "Okay, sure, but you also won four other games by less than a TD as well." 

Not trying to troll. Not a Packers, Vikings or Bears fan. I'm just saying the law of averages kind of worked itself out here. You split your one score games roughly down the middle. You can say the Lions could very easily be 14-3, but by the same token, they could also very easily have lost some of those close games that they did win as well and ended up 5-12 or 6-11. Unlucky bounces, bad calls, anything could've happened. 

I'm sure I'll be downvoted and labeled as a pessimist or a troll. That's fine, but I'm not intending to be. I'm just saying that I look at both sides of that "We could've easily had this or that record" argument. All that to say, I'm rooting for the Lions next year. They should, more than anyone else, finally get to know what success in the NFL feels like. 

St Joe Blues

January 12th, 2023 at 12:26 PM ^

The Lions laid 2 eggs, vs. NE (29-0) and Dal (24-6). Take out those 2 games and the average score in their losses was 35-30. In their wins? 30-18. Most of their wins were convincing and most of their losses were in doubt until the end. Even with the 47 point differential in the NE and Dal games, the Lions still outscored opponents 453-427, the only North team with a plus margin and 4th best overall in the NFC.

Meanwhile, the Vikings were 12-0 in one-score games and were outscored 424-427 on the season. Their average loss was 35-12.5.

Blue Middle

January 12th, 2023 at 2:06 PM ^

The Lions looked like a Top 5 team at the end of the season.  If they can improve the defense just a bit and Jamo gets his head on straight, we win the division in 2023.